Fictionary

Do you ever pick up a book and are reading along, lah-de-dah-de-dah, when whammo. You wonder if you've suddenly contracted Alzheimer's because you sure as heck don't remember if Hector is the uncle and Hewie the nephew, or vice versa. Or you feel like an idiot because you have no idea what a rantipole is and you're pretty sure every 5th grader knows the definition. Don't sweat it, folks. Have I found an app for you!

Fictionary is an online app to help you with book specific characters and terminology. Now you can enjoy your stories without confusion and it's all spoiler free. Here's how it works . . .

You simply select a word in your e-reader and Fictionary pops up a definition or short bio of the word or person. If you still don't get it, or want more info, you can pull down an entire screen with gobs of clarification.

It's a relatively new site so there aren't a ton of books to choose from yet. HERE are the books/authors they feature, which are mostly classic, young adult, fantasy or sci fi. You can request a particular book for them to put up next. Doesn't mean they'll do it immediately, but hey, at least they listen.

Fictionaries are free and work on all Kindles and some Android ePub apps. So go ahead and swallow your pride. Sometimes it's hard to admit you don't know what a needy mizzler is.